Cassell's History of England, Vol. 5 (of 8): From the Peninsular War to the Death of Sir Robert PeelAnonymous
History
Cassell's History of England, Vol. 5 (of 8): From the Peninsular War to the Death of Sir Robert Peel
Anonymous
Great Britain -- History
Lord Wellington came up with him on the 9th of April, in the meantime
having had to get across the rapid Garonne, with all his artillery
and stores, in the face of the French batteries. The next morning,
the 10th, being Easter Sunday, Wellington attacked Soult in all his
positions. These were remarkably strong, most of his troops being
posted on well-fortified heights, bristling with cannon, various
strongly-built houses being crammed with riflemen; while a network of
vineyards and orchards, surrounded by stone walls, and intersected
by streams, protected his men, and rendered the coming at them most
difficult. The forces on both sides were nearly equal. Soult had about
forty-two thousand men, and Wellington, besides his army composed of
British, Germans, and Portuguese, had a division of fifteen thousand
Spaniards. The difficulties of the situation far out-balanced the
excess of about three thousand men on the British side; but every
quarter was gallantly attacked and, after a severe conflict, carried.
Soult retired into Toulouse, and during the ensuing night he evacuated
it, and retreated to Carcassonne. The loss of the Allies in killed was
six hundred, and about four thousand wounded. Soult confessed to three
thousand two hundred killed and wounded, but we may calculate his total
loss at little less than that of the Allies, although his troops had
been protected by their stone walls and houses.
On the 12th of April Wellington entered Toulouse amid the acclamations
of the people. But Lord Wellington was accused by the French of
fighting the battle five days after the abdication of Buonaparte, and
therefore incurring a most needless waste of life. The fact was, that
it was not till the afternoon of the 12th of April that Colonel Cooke
and the French Colonel, St. Simon, arrived at Toulouse, bringing the
official information that Buonaparte had abdicated at Fontainebleau on
the 4th. Thus it happened that the battle was fought a week before the
knowledge of the peace was received. Moreover, we have the evidence
of Soult's own correspondence, that on the 7th of April, after he had
heard of the entrance of the Allies into Paris, he was determined to
fight another battle, and for the very reason that the Allies had
entered Paris. When the English and French colonels arrived at Soult's
camp with the same news that they had communicated to Wellington, Soult
refused to submit to the Provisional Government until he received
orders from Napoleon; nor did he acknowledge this Government till the
17th, when Wellington was in full pursuit of him towards Castelnaudary.
On the 18th a convention was signed between Wellington and Soult,
and on the following day a like one was signed between Wellington
and Suchet. On the 21st Lord Wellington announced to his army that
hostilities were at an end, and thanked them "for their uniform
discipline and gallantry in the field, and for their conciliatory
conduct towards the inhabitants of the country."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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